As if she got slapped by Buddha, Caiyi stared at Tian Yi with confusion and bewilderment.
The moment her Spirit Qi had entered the area of his Dantian, she felt as if there was a profound and massive behemoth staring at her from above— like a shadow of a dragon staring down at an ant from behind the clouds.
That feeling had caused her mind to go blank, her soul to tremble with terror, her body to freeze— it had terrified her to the core.
"Y-You… Who are you?" she asked him with a trembling voice.
"I am… Shuyi…" he replied to her, his voice oddly calm.
Caiyi frowned, pushing herself back onto her feet. Wiping the blood from her lips, she smiled. "Do you really think that I will trust you at this point? Although I don't really care about your reason for hiding your identity, I am a bit curious… Is the person you have been playing as today just an act, or...?"
Tian Yi tilted his head, looking genuinely puzzled at her question. "What do you mean?" he asked.
Caiyi smiled bitterly upon seeing his reaction. "I see… so this is the real you… I am relieved..." she mumbled.
"Sister Caiyi, why did you do that just now?" he suddenly asked her.
"It was just my curiosity; don't mind it." Caiyi sighed. "I didn't have any ulterior motives if you are willing to believe me."
Tian Yi gently shook his head. "I know," he said. "Sister Caiyi's soul is pure, so I believe that she didn't have any evil intentions."
"Instead, I would like to apologize for injuring you... It was a self-defense mechanism my father placed in me that will trigger once anyone tries to probe too deep, forcefully attacking the intruder."
Caiyi's eyes widened, but she did not open her mouth to ask why or who his father was.
"Sister Caiyi…" Tian Yi opened his mouth but no words came out; it was as if he didn't know what to say at the scene in front of him.
There, in front of him, Caiyi's figure was slowly disappearing— fading.
It was as though she was a ghost, currently going through the process of ascension, her body becoming more transparent by the second.
Caiyi calmy looked at her palms and smiled bitterly. "Damn it, Shuyi… That attack earlier had disturbed the connection… Looks like my vacation will be ending sooner than planned, and this is all thanks to you, Shuyi."
She looked at Tian Yi, her eyes no longer filled with fear but calmness. "You are an interesting individual, Shuyi. Although I have failed to see the real you today, also suffering a huge blow to my pride, I will not give up! If we get the chance to see each other again, I will reveal your true identity at that time!" she said with a playful grin.
Tian Yi nodded also with a smile. "I also hope to see the real Sister Caiyi one day."
Caiyi burst out laughing at his words. "So you too already knew from the start, huh? Very well, I shall conclude this as a draw."
Her body was near invisible at this point; she was at her limit with only a few moments left before fully disappearing like a real ghost.
"Shuyi! Even though we have only met today and have only done so many things together, it feels to me as though we have spent time with each other much longer than just that! It was fun, really!"
"And although I do not know how you had obtained the Celestial Coin, I will not be giving it back to you! If you really want it back, then leave this Realm of Mortals and try to find me in the Realm of Gods! I will be waiting for you!"
Caiyi's words echoed in the room, her figure disappearing into thin air along with her laughter.
"....."
Tian Yi silently watched as Caiyi's figure disappeared, leaving only him and a shocked Meng Xiang behind.
He closed his eyes. 'Realm of Gods, huh? That's where I had appeared for the first time outside…'
"B-B-Big B-Brother…" Meng Xiang pulled his robes with her shaky hands, her eyes wide with shock and horror. "W-What happened to Big Sister?" she asked him in a trembling voice.
To witness Caiyi coughing blood and disappearing like a ghost in front of her had nearly caused her to faint from fright. "W-Was B-Big Sister a… ghost…? Did she…. D— Di— Die…?" she continued, clearly afraid of 'death'.
Tian Yi opened his eyes and squatted, looking into her eyes at the same height.
"That was Sister Caiyi's clone, a fake vessel she controlled from somewhere very, very far away…" he explained to her.
"A clone…?"
"Yes, so she didn't die and is still alive somewhere out there."
"Will she come back?" she asked him.
"...."
He smiled bitterly, even he did not know.
Understanding the meaning behind his sad-looking smile, Meng Xiang was depressed that Caiyi had disappeared— she liked her presence, after all.
"Big Brother, what is this Realm of Gods?" she suddenly asked him.
"It is a place where Gods roam, a place where many important figures reside— is what my father once told me."
"Do you think we can go there one day?" she asked him with pleading eyes.
Tian Yi smiled. "Of course. My goal is to witness all there is to see under the Nine Heavens for myself, and the Realm of Gods is only one small step out of the thousands I have to take in order for me to fulfill that dream."
Meng Xiang nodded, clearly anticipating the day she goes to this 'Realm of Gods' with him to see Caiyi once again.
Tian Yi nodded, then he turned to look at the firmament, his gaze seemingly able to see into the starry sky and to a place so far away that one can only dream of traversing— the Realm of Gods!
======
Somewhere in the Realm of Gods, a supple figure that had been in a sleeping state trembled, her eyes slowly opening for the first time in years, and the glowing light in her eyes shone with profoundness mixed with coldness.
The figure was a peerless beauty with facial features that could easily make even the strongest of men to kneel with a mere glance. Her long black hair was made to look shorter than actual from the head accessories she wore. Her eyebrows were thin and straight, giving her expression a natural solemn look, slightly cold even. And of course, her skin was like white jade without the slightest impurity.
The peerless beauty slowly sat up from her bed made of green jade that exuded the purest quality of Spirit Qi— the aura around her filled with absolute authority and dominance.
"Shuyi, huh? Even though I had no control over her body and was only able to see what she saw..."
The peerless beauty flipped her hand to see a shiny coin resting on her palm, and she smiled upon seeing the coin for the first time in a very long time.
The smile had seemingly caused time itself to freeze, hoping it would preserve that smile for an eternity.
"If you do not strive for it, a dream is nothing more than just a dream, huh?" her gaze was filled with complicated emotions at that moment, but her heart was getting more resolute by the second.
Closing her palm into a fist, her eyes started to shine with resolution. "Oblivious little brat, you are still too young and naive to be giving me advice regarding life!" she said out loud, her gentle smile contradicting her words.
The peerless beauty stood up from her bed and walked to stand by the edge of the clouds, her gaze at the horizon of clouds, as though she could feel someone staring at her from a distance.
As if she got slapped by Buddha, Caiyi stared at Tian Yi with confusion and bewilderment.
The moment her Spirit Qi had entered the area of his Dantian, she felt as if there was a profound and massive behemoth staring at her from above— like a shadow of a dragon staring down at an ant from behind the clouds.
That feeling had caused her mind to go blank, her soul to tremble with terror, her body to freeze— it had terrified her to the core.
"Y-You… Who are you?" she asked him with a trembling voice.
"I am… Shuyi…" he replied to her, his voice oddly calm.
Caiyi frowned, pushing herself back onto her feet. Wiping the blood from her lips, she smiled. "Do you really think that I will trust you at this point? Although I don't really care about your reason for hiding your identity, I am a bit curious… Is the person you have been playing as today just an act, or...?"
Tian Yi tilted his head, looking genuinely puzzled at her question. "What do you mean?" he asked.
Caiyi smiled bitterly upon seeing his reaction. "I see… so this is the real you… I am relieved..." she mumbled.
"Sister Caiyi, why did you do that just now?" he suddenly asked her.
"It was just my curiosity; don't mind it." Caiyi sighed. "I didn't have any ulterior motives if you are willing to believe me."
Tian Yi gently shook his head. "I know," he said. "Sister Caiyi's soul is pure, so I believe that she didn't have any evil intentions."
"Instead, I would like to apologize for injuring you... It was a self-defense mechanism my father placed in me that will trigger once anyone tries to probe too deep, forcefully attacking the intruder."
Caiyi's eyes widened, but she did not open her mouth to ask why or who his father was.
"Sister Caiyi…" Tian Yi opened his mouth but no words came out; it was as if he didn't know what to say at the scene in front of him.
There, in front of him, Caiyi's figure was slowly disappearing— fading.
It was as though she was a ghost, currently going through the process of ascension, her body becoming more transparent by the second.
Caiyi calmy looked at her palms and smiled bitterly. "Damn it, Shuyi… That attack earlier had disturbed the connection… Looks like my vacation will be ending sooner than planned, and this is all thanks to you, Shuyi."
She looked at Tian Yi, her eyes no longer filled with fear but calmness. "You are an interesting individual, Shuyi. Although I have failed to see the real you today, also suffering a huge blow to my pride, I will not give up! If we get the chance to see each other again, I will reveal your true identity at that time!" she said with a playful grin.
Tian Yi nodded also with a smile. "I also hope to see the real Sister Caiyi one day."
Caiyi burst out laughing at his words. "So you too already knew from the start, huh? Very well, I shall conclude this as a draw."
Her body was near invisible at this point; she was at her limit with only a few moments left before fully disappearing like a real ghost.
"Shuyi! Even though we have only met today and have only done so many things together, it feels to me as though we have spent time with each other much longer than just that! It was fun, really!"
"And although I do not know how you had obtained the Celestial Coin, I will not be giving it back to you! If you really want it back, then leave this Realm of Mortals and try to find me in the Realm of Gods! I will be waiting for you!"
Caiyi's words echoed in the room, her figure disappearing into thin air along with her laughter.
"....."
Tian Yi silently watched as Caiyi's figure disappeared, leaving only him and a shocked Meng Xiang behind.
He closed his eyes. 'Realm of Gods, huh? That's where I had appeared for the first time outside…'
"B-B-Big B-Brother…" Meng Xiang pulled his robes with her shaky hands, her eyes wide with shock and horror. "W-What happened to Big Sister?" she asked him in a trembling voice.
To witness Caiyi coughing blood and disappearing like a ghost in front of her had nearly caused her to faint from fright. "W-Was B-Big Sister a… ghost…? Did she…. D— Di— Die…?" she continued, clearly afraid of 'death'.
Tian Yi opened his eyes and squatted, looking into her eyes at the same height.
"That was Sister Caiyi's clone, a fake vessel she controlled from somewhere very, very far away…" he explained to her.
"A clone…?"
"Yes, so she didn't die and is still alive somewhere out there."
"Will she come back?" she asked him.
"...."
He smiled bitterly, even he did not know.
Understanding the meaning behind his sad-looking smile, Meng Xiang was depressed that Caiyi had disappeared— she liked her presence, after all.
"Big Brother, what is this Realm of Gods?" she suddenly asked him.
"It is a place where Gods roam, a place where many important figures reside— is what my father once told me."
"Do you think we can go there one day?" she asked him with pleading eyes.
Tian Yi smiled. "Of course. My goal is to witness all there is to see under the Nine Heavens for myself, and the Realm of Gods is only one small step out of the thousands I have to take in order for me to fulfill that dream."
Meng Xiang nodded, clearly anticipating the day she goes to this 'Realm of Gods' with him to see Caiyi once again.
Tian Yi nodded, then he turned to look at the firmament, his gaze seemingly able to see into the starry sky and to a place so far away that one can only dream of traversing— the Realm of Gods!
======
Somewhere in the Realm of Gods, a supple figure that had been in a sleeping state trembled, her eyes slowly opening for the first time in years, and the glowing light in her eyes shone with profoundness mixed with coldness.
The figure was a peerless beauty with facial features that could easily make even the strongest of men to kneel with a mere glance. Her long black hair was made to look shorter than actual from the head accessories she wore. Her eyebrows were thin and straight, giving her expression a natural solemn look, slightly cold even. And of course, her skin was like white jade without the slightest impurity.
The peerless beauty slowly sat up from her bed made of green jade that exuded the purest quality of Spirit Qi— the aura around her filled with absolute authority and dominance.
"Shuyi, huh? Even though I had no control over her body and was only able to see what she saw..."
The peerless beauty flipped her hand to see a shiny coin resting on her palm, and she smiled upon seeing the coin for the first time in a very long time.
The smile had seemingly caused time itself to freeze, hoping it would preserve that smile for an eternity.
"If you do not strive for it, a dream is nothing more than just a dream, huh?" her gaze was filled with complicated emotions at that moment, but her heart was getting more resolute by the second.
Closing her palm into a fist, her eyes started to shine with resolution. "Oblivious little brat, you are still too young and naive to be giving me advice regarding life!" she said out loud, her gentle smile contradicting her words.
The peerless beauty stood up from her bed and walked to stand by the edge of the clouds, her gaze at the horizon of clouds, as though she could feel someone staring at her from a distance.
